I am thinking of getting a roadbike. Its a new area of biking to me so i thought i'd ask as i've noticed a few of you ride road bikes too. I've got about £1000 on cycle to work scheme to get a bike, shoes and bibs etc.

Any help/advice gladly received 😀

Boardman Team Carbon . Unbeatable spec for the price and rave reviews. I'm seriously thinking about the Pro Carbon.

If you want something that will ride like a proper road bike and still take proper mudguards then I can recommend a Kinesis Racelight Tk2 or Racelight T2. I have a TK and use it year round for commuting and sportives.

…if it was my money

Beat me to it, The Boardman Team Carbon is a cracking bike.

Ok. Suppose you're self employed and so have to spend your own money rather than that which had been kindly donated by the other taxpayers of this country, which brings the budget down to £600, what bike then?

You need to firstly decide what you want it for – are you going to be racing or just going out for leisure rides and maybe doing the odd sportive? This will determine the geometry of the bike.

Bibshorts, shoes and pedals could set you back anything from £100 upwards. You also may need a new cycling top with rear pockets which is another £30 at least, and possibly other bits and pieces (small saddle bag, mini pump, spare tubes etc). So you may be looking at a bike around the £800-£850 price points.

Don't discount the larger brands such as Specialized, Trek, Giant and Bianchi where you will get a decent aluminium frame with carbon forks and either Tiagra or 105 kit. Other brands such as Cube, Felt and Cannondale are also worth a look. The crucial thing is to try before you buy – fit is much more important on a road bike than on a mtb.

Lots of threads on this exact question over on Bike Radar forums.

CAAD9 Tiagra is, IIRC, under £1k. Only decision needed is black or Liquigas, assuming you can find one.

Andy

I bought a Planet x sl pro carbon Ultegra and it is phenominal. Plus all the components are custom fitted after a conversation with the guys at the warehouse, so you should not need to change anything. I never even had to adjust the seatpost!

Philby has the best answer so far. The Boardman is a good bike for sure but it is a grand and it's a racing bike, it's hardly going to be the best choice for a commuter, especially if you're not used to road bikes and you're looking for other kit to go with it.

Have a look at bike rader for similar questions, I feel you're going to get a lot of enthusiast answers here and while they're not wrong, it's questionable if the answer is right for you.

+1 for the boardman… pretty impossible to beat on value and performance for 1k.

Not the comfiest bike around, but a fantastic ride.

Ok. Suppose you're self employed and so have to spend your own money rather than that which had been kindly donated by the other taxpayers of this country, which brings the budget down to £600, what bike then?

there are options for self employeed

but for £600 notes something by Giant would be good

Giant Defy 2? Full Tiagra (equivalent to Deore) with reasonable wheels and decent frame and fork. £800 so leaves plenty for decent shorts, pedals, shoes, etc.

Ok. Suppose you're self employed and so have to spend your own money rather than that which had been kindly donated by the other taxpayers of this country, which brings the budget down to £600, what bike then?

If you've got a Decathlon near you: I bought a Sport 2 last year and I'm very happy with it – it cost me 550 euros, I suppose the price would be similar in GBP.

I was looking at the same price bracket for a triathlon/training/road/commute bike. Triathlon bikes were far too specialist, so some sort of road/race bike was more appropriate. Settled on the two bikes above Boardman and Plant X, purely due to spec and reviews. Have decided on the Boardman, because I can go to the local Halfords and get the correct sizing and check that it is reasonably comfortable for me. I'm not quite sure whether they have demo bikes to take out, probably not. They also do a same spec alu frame one at £849.